Allocating time-frequency blocks for a relay link and an access link

ABSTRACT

A base station is provided with a communication unit for communicating with a mobile terminal via a relay link between the base station and a relay device and an access link between the relay device and the mobile terminal, and a selection unit for selecting an allocation pattern of an uplink of the relay link, a downlink of the relay link, an uplink of the access link, and a downlink of the access link to frequency-time blocks from a plurality of allocation patterns that are different in delay occurring between the base station and the mobile terminal.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.13/383,590, filed Jan. 12, 2012, which is the National Stage ofPCT/JP2010/059853 filed Jun. 10, 2010, which claims priority to JapanesePatent Application No. 2009-174589 filed Jul. 27, 2009, the entirecontents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a base station, a communication system,a mobile terminal, and a relay device.

BACKGROUND ART

In 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project), a technology that uses arelay device (relay station) to realize an increase in the throughput atthe cell edge is being actively considered.

This relay device receives, in a downlink, a signal transmitted from abase station, amplifies the same, and then transmits the amplifiedsignal to a mobile terminal. By performing such relaying, the relaydevice can increase the signal-to-noise ratio than when directlytransmitting a signal from the base station to the mobile terminal.Similarly, in an uplink, the relay device can maintain highsignal-to-noise ratio by relaying a signal transmitted from the mobileterminal to the base station. Additionally, such relaying by the relaydevice is described in Non-Patent Literature 1, for example.

Furthermore, as a relay scheme of the relay device, an Amp-Forward type,a Decode-Forward type, and the like can be cited. The Amp-Forward typeis a scheme of amplifying and transmitting a received signal whilekeeping it as an analogue signal. According to this Amp-Forward type,although the signal-to-noise ratio is not improved, there is anadvantage that the communication protocol does not have to be refined.Additionally, the relay device has a feedback path between atransmission antenna and a reception antenna, and is designed such thatthe feedback path does not oscillate.

The Decode-Forward type is a scheme of converting a received signal to adigital signal by AD conversion, performing decoding such as errorcorrection on the digital signal, encoding again the decoded digitalsignal, converting the digital signal to an analogue signal by DAconversion, amplifying the analogue signal, and transmitting the same.According to the Decode-Forward type, the signal-to-noise ratio can beimproved by a coding gain. Also, by storing a digital signal obtained byreception in a memory and transmitting the digital signal in the nexttime slot, the relay device can avoid oscillation of a feedback circuitbetween a transmission antenna and a reception antenna. Additionally,the relay device is also capable of avoiding the oscillation by changingthe frequency instead of the time slot.

CITATION LIST Non-Patent Literature

-   Non-Patent Literature 1: Panasonic, “Discussion on the TD relay and    FD relay for FDD system”, Nov. 10-14, 2008

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

On the other hand, in LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE-Advanced,reduction in the communication delay between users (for example, 50 msor less) is desired. However, if a relay device is provided between abase station and a mobile terminal, delay is caused at the relay device,and the issue related to delay becomes more significant.

Accordingly, the present invention is made in view of the above problem,and the object of the present invention is to provide a base station, acommunication system, a mobile terminal, and a relay device which arenovel and improved, and which are capable of allocating each link to afrequency-time block according to any of a plurality of link allocationpatterns with different delay characteristics.

Solution to Problem

According to an aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve theabove-mentioned object, there is provided a base station including acommunication unit for communicating with a mobile terminal via a relaylink between the base station and a relay device and an access linkbetween the relay device and the mobile terminal, and a selection unitfor selecting an allocation pattern of an uplink of the relay link, adownlink of the relay link, an uplink of the access link, and a downlinkof the access link to frequency-time blocks from a plurality ofallocation patterns that are different in delay characteristicsoccurring between the base station and the mobile terminal.

The communication unit may receive information indicating an allocationpattern that the relay device is compatible with, and the selection unitmay select the allocation pattern that the relay device is compatiblewith from the plurality of allocation patterns.

The selection unit may select the allocation pattern according to delaycharacteristics required for communication between the base station andthe mobile terminal.

One radio frame may be formed from a plurality of subframes, and a timeslot of each of the frequency-time blocks may correspond to a time slotof a subframe.

One radio frame may be formed from a plurality of subframes formed froma plurality of slots, and a time slot of each of the frequency-timeblocks may correspond to a time slot of a slot.

The plurality of allocation patterns may include an allocation patternwhere frequency-time blocks of the downlink of the relay link and thedownlink of the access link are different in time, and frequency-timeblocks of the uplink of the access link and the uplink of the relay linkare different in time, and an allocation pattern where frequency-timeblocks of the downlink of the relay link and the downlink of the accesslink are different in frequency, and frequency-time blocks of the uplinkof the access link and the uplink of the relay link are different infrequency.

The plurality of allocation patterns may include an allocation patternwhere frequency-time blocks of the uplink of the relay link, thedownlink of the relay link, the uplink of the access link, and thedownlink of the access link are same in time but different in frequency.

The plurality of allocation patterns may include an allocation patternwhere frequency-time blocks of the uplink of the relay link, thedownlink of the relay link, the uplink of the access link, and thedownlink of the access link are same in frequency but different in time.

The plurality of allocation patterns may include an allocation patternwhere frequency-time blocks of the downlink of the relay link and thedownlink of the access link are different in time and frequency, andfrequency-time blocks of the uplink of the access link and the uplink ofthe relay link are different in time and frequency.

According to another aspect of the present invention, in order toachieve the above-mentioned object, there is provided a communicationsystem including a mobile terminal, a relay device, and a base stationincluding a communication unit for communicating with the mobileterminal via a relay link between the base station and the relay deviceand an access link between the relay device and the mobile terminal, anda selection unit for selecting an allocation pattern of an uplink of therelay link, a downlink of the relay link, an uplink of the access link,and a downlink of the access link to frequency-time blocks from aplurality of allocation patterns that are different in delaycharacteristics occurring between the base station and the mobileterminal.

According to another aspect of the present invention, in order toachieve the above-mentioned object, there is provided a mobile terminal.The mobile terminal communicates with a base station via a relay deviceaccording to an allocation pattern selected by a selection unit, thebase station including a communication unit for communicating with themobile terminal via a relay link between the base station and the relaydevice and an access link between the relay device and the mobileterminal, and the selection unit for selecting an allocation pattern ofan uplink of the relay link, a downlink of the relay link, an uplink ofthe access link, and a downlink of the access link to frequency-timeblocks from a plurality of allocation patterns that are different indelay characteristics occurring between the base station and the mobileterminal.

According to another aspect of the present invention, in order toachieve the above-mentioned object, there is provided a relay device.The relay device relays communication between a base station and amobile terminal according to an allocation pattern selected by aselection unit, the base station including a communication unit forcommunicating with the mobile terminal via a relay link between the basestation and the relay device and an access link between the relay deviceand the mobile terminal, and the selection unit for selecting anallocation pattern of an uplink of the relay link, a downlink of therelay link, an uplink of the access link, and a downlink of the accesslink to frequency-time blocks from a plurality of allocation patternsthat are different in delay characteristics occurring between the basestation and the mobile terminal.

Advantageous Effects of Invention

As described above, according to the present invention, each link can beallocated to a frequency-time block according to any of a plurality oflink allocation patterns with different delay characteristics.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of acommunication system 1 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing each link in the communicationsystem 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example configuration of aradio frame used in the communication system 1 according to theembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a mobileterminal 20.

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a relaydevice 30.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a basestation 10.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 1 foreach link.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 2 foreach link.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 3 foreach link.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 4 foreach link.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 5 foreach link.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 6 foreach link.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 7 foreach link.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 8 foreach link.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing an example configuration of aradio frame by a combination of allocation patterns.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing a modified example of aconfiguration of a radio frame by a combination of allocation patterns.

FIG. 17 is a sequence chart showing an operation of the communicationsystem 1 according to the embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the appended drawings. Note that,in this specification and the drawings, elements that have substantiallythe same function and structure are denoted with the same referencesigns, and repeated explanation is omitted.

Also, in this specification and the drawings, a plurality of structuralelements having substantially the same functional configuration may bedistinguished from each other by each having a different letter added tothe same reference numeral. For example, a plurality of elements havingsubstantially the same functional configuration are distinguished fromeach other as necessary as mobile terminals 20A, 20B, and 20C. However,if it is not particularly necessary to distinguish each of a pluralityof structural elements having substantially the same functionalconfiguration, only the same reference numeral is assigned. For example,if it is not particularly necessary to distinguish between the mobileterminals 20A, 20B, and 20C, they are simply referred to as the mobileterminal 20.

Furthermore, the “Description of Embodiments” will be describedaccording to the following item order.

1. Overview of Communication System

2. Configuration of Mobile Terminal

3. Configuration of Relay Device

4. Configuration of Base Station

5. Operation of Communication System

6. Summary

<1. Overview of Communication System>

First, a communication system 1 according to an embodiment of thepresent invention will be briefly described with reference to FIGS. 1 to3.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of thecommunication system 1 according to the embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 1 according tothe embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of basestations 10A, 10B, and 10C, a backbone network 12, a plurality of mobileterminals 20A, 20B, and 20C, and a plurality of relay devices 30A and30B.

The plurality of base stations 10A, 10B, and 10C manage scheduleinformation for communicating with the mobile terminals 20 that arepresent in their radio wave coverages. The plurality of base stations10A, 10B, and 10C communicate with the mobile terminals 20 present intheir radio wave coverages according to the schedule information.

For example, the base station 10A manages schedule information onfrequency-time for communicating with the mobile terminal 20C present inthe radio wave coverage of the base station 10A. The base station 10Acommunicates with the mobile terminal 20C present in the radio wavecoverage of the base station 10A according to the schedule informationdescribed above.

Also, the plurality of base stations 10A, 10B, and 10C are also capableof communicating with the mobile terminals 20 via relay devices 30present in their radio wave coverages. In this case, the plurality ofbase stations 10A, 10B, and 10C manage schedule information forcommunicating with the relay devices 30, and schedule information forthe relay devices 30 and the mobile terminals 20 to communicate witheach other.

For example, the base station 10A manages schedule information onfrequency-time for communicating with a relay device 30A present in theradio wave coverage of the base station 10A, and manages scheduleinformation on frequency-time for the relay device 30A and the mobileterminals 20A and 20B to communicate with each other. The base station10A communicates with the relay device 30A according to the scheduleinformation described above.

Additionally, in the present specification, an explanation will be givenplacing emphasis on a case where frequency-time schedule management isperformed by the base station 10, but the present invention is notlimited to such an example. For example, the frequency-time schedulemanagement may be performed by the base station 10 and the relay device30 working in cooperation with each other, or may be performed by thebase station 10, the relay device 30, and the mobile terminal 20 workingin cooperation with each other, or may be performed by the relay device30.

Furthermore, the plurality of base stations 10A, 10B, and 10C areconnected via the backbone network 12. The plurality of base stations10A, 10B, and 10C are capable of exchanging the schedule informationthat each manages via this backbone network 12, for example.

The relay device 30 relays the communication between the base station 10and the mobile terminal 20 according to the schedule information onfrequency-time managed by the base station 10. Specifically, in thedownlink, the relay device 30 receives a signal transmitted from thebase station 10, and transmits the amplified signal to the mobileterminal 20 using the frequency-time that is according to the scheduleinformation. By performing such relaying, the relay device 30 canincrease the signal-to-noise ratio than when directly transmitting thesignal from the base station 10 to the mobile terminal 20 near the celledge.

Similarly, also in the uplink, the relay device 30 relays a signaltransmitted from the mobile terminal 20 to the base station 10 accordingto the schedule information on frequency-time managed by the basestation 10, and thereby maintains a high signal-to-noise ratio.Additionally, an example is shown in FIG. 1 where only the relay device30A is present in the cell provided by the base station 10A, but aplurality of relay devices 30 may be present in the cell provided by thebase station 10A. Link names will now be organized with reference toFIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing each link in the communicationsystem 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shownin FIG. 2, a direct communication path between the base station 10 andthe mobile terminal 20 is referred to as a direct link. Also, thedownlink of this direct link is referred to as a direct downlink (D-d),and the uplink of this direct link is referred to as a direct uplink(D-u).

Also, the communication path between the base station 10 and the relaydevice 30 is referred to as a relay link, and the downlink of this relaylink is referred to as a relay downlink (R-d), and the uplink of thisrelay link is referred to as a relay uplink (R-u). Furthermore, thecommunication path between the relay device 30 and the base station 10is referred to as an access link, and the downlink of this access linkis referred to as an access downlink (A-d), and the uplink of thisaccess link is referred to as an access uplink (A-u).

The communication system 1 will be again described with reference toFIG. 1. As described above, the mobile terminal 20 included in thecommunication system 1 communicates with the base station 10 directly orvia the relay device 30, according to the schedule information managedby the base station 10. Additionally, as the data to betransmitted/received by the mobile terminal 20, audio data, music datasuch as music, a lecture, a radio program, or the like, still image datasuch as a photograph, a document, a painting, a diagram, or the like,video data such as a movie, a television program, a video program, agame image, or the like, may be cited.

Now, the configuration of a radio frame used in the communication system1 according to the present embodiment will be described with referenceto FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example configuration of aradio frame used in the communication system 1 according to the presentembodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the length of each radio frame is 10 ms.Also, each radio frame is formed from ten subframes #0 to #9 whoselengths are 1 ms.

Also, each subframe is formed from two 0.5 ms slots, and each 0.5 msslot is formed from seven OFDM (orthogonal frequency divisionmultiplexing) symbols.

Also, the fifth and sixth OFDM symbols of the first 0.5 ms slotsincluded in the subframes #0 and #5 are used for transmission ofreference signals for synchronization. The mobile terminal 20 performs acell search and a synchronization process based on this reference signaltransmitted from the base station 10 or the relay station 30.

Additionally, the base station 10 allots time on a per-0.5 ms slot basisfor communication with the mobile terminal 20. Furthermore, to separatethe uplink and the downlink, FDD (Frequency Division Duplex) and TDD(Time Division Duplex) are used. In the case of TDD, it is possible toselect for each subframe whether to use the subframe for uplink ordownlink.

<2. Configuration of Mobile Terminal>

In the foregoing, the communication system 1 according to the presentembodiment has been briefly described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.Next, the configuration of the mobile terminal 20 included in thecommunication system 1 according to the present embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of themobile terminal 20. As shown in FIG. 4, the mobile terminal 20 includesa plurality of antennas 220 a to 220 n, an analogue processing unit 224,an AD/DA converter 228, and a digital processing unit 230.

Each of the plurality of antennas 220 a to 220 n receives a radio signalfrom the base station 10 or the relay device 30 and acquires anelectrical high-frequency signal, and supplies the high-frequency signalto the analogue processing unit 224. Also, each of the plurality ofantennas 220 a to 220 n transmits a radio signal to the base station 10or the relay device 30 based on the high-frequency signal supplied fromthe analogue processing unit 224. Since the mobile terminal 20 isprovided with the plurality of antennas 220 a to 220 n as described, itis capable of performing MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output)communication or diversity communication.

The analogue processing unit 224 converts the high-frequency signalssupplied from the plurality of antennas 220 a to 220 n into basebandsignals by performing analogue processing such as amplification,filtering, down-conversion, or the like. Also, the analogue processingunit 224 converts a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DA converter228 into a high-frequency signal.

The AD/DA converter 228 converts the analogue baseband signal suppliedfrom the analogue processing unit 224 into a digital format, andsupplies the same to the digital processing unit 230. Also, the AD/DAconverter 228 converts a digital baseband signal supplied from thedigital processing unit 230 into an analogue format, and supplies thesame to the analogue processing unit 224.

The digital processing unit 230 includes a synchronization unit 232, adecoder 234, a SINR (Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio)acquisition unit 236, a transmission data generation unit 238, anencoder 240, a control unit 242, and a schedule information holding unit244. Among these, the synchronization unit 232, the decoder 234, theencoder 240, and the like function, together with the plurality ofantennas 220 a to 220 n, the analogue processing unit 224, and the AD/DAconverter 228, as a communication unit for communicating with the basestation 10 and the relay device 30.

The synchronization unit 232 is supplied, from the AD/DA converter 228,with a reference signal transmitted from the base station 10 or therelay device 30, and performs a synchronization process of a radio framebased on the reference signal. Specifically, the synchronization unit232 performs synchronization of the radio frame by computing thecorrelation between the reference signal and a known sequence patternand detecting the peak position of the correlation.

The decoder 234 decodes a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DAconverter 228 and obtains received data. Additionally, the decoding mayinclude a MIMO reception process and an OFDM demodulation process, forexample.

The SINR acquisition unit 236 acquires the level of SINR with respect tothe relay device 30 from the correlation of the reference signalobtained by the synchronization unit 232. Here, each relay device 30transmits a reference signal having any of a plurality of sequencepatterns. Therefore, the SINR acquisition unit 236 can acquire the SINRfor each relay device 30 based on the difference between the sequencepatterns of the reference signals.

The transmission data generation unit 238 is supplied, from the SINRacquisition unit 236, with information indicating the SINR of each relaydevice 30, and generates transmission data including the information andsupplies the same to the encoder 240.

The encoder 240 encodes the transmission data supplied from thetransmission data generation unit 238, and supplies the same to theAD/DA converter 228. Additionally, the encoding may include a MIMOtransmission process and an OFDM demodulation process, for example.

The control unit 242 controls transmission processing and receptionprocessing at the mobile terminal 20 according to the scheduleinformation held in the schedule information holding unit 244. Forexample, the mobile terminal 20 performs, based on the control of thecontrol unit 242, transmission processing and reception processing usingfrequency-time blocks indicated by the schedule information.

The schedule information holding unit 244 holds the schedule informationmanaged by the base station 10. This schedule information indicates afrequency-time block to be used for the access downlink or afrequency-time block to be used for the access uplink, for example.

Additionally, the schedule information of the uplink and the downlink isincluded in a PDCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) which is adownlink control channel. Additionally, this PDCH is transmitted usingthe first one to three OFDM symbols of a subframe, in the radio frame,allocated to the downlink.

<3. Configuration of Relay Device>

Next, the configuration of the relay device 30 will be described withreference to FIG. 5.

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of therelay device 30. As shown in FIG. 5, the relay device 30 includes aplurality of antennas 320 a to 320 n, an analogue processing unit 324,an AD/DA converter 328, and a digital processing unit 330.

Each of the plurality of antennas 320 a to 320 n receives a radio signalfrom the base station 10 or the mobile terminal 20 and acquires anelectrical high-frequency signal, and supplies the high-frequency signalto the analogue processing unit 324. Also, each of the plurality ofantennas 320 a to 320 n transmits a radio signal to the base station 10or the mobile terminal 20 based on the high-frequency signal suppliedfrom the analogue processing unit 324. Since the relay device 30 isprovided with the plurality of antennas 320 a to 320 n as described, itis capable of performing MIMO communication or diversity communication.

The analogue processing unit 324 converts the high-frequency signalssupplied from the plurality of antennas 320 a to 320 n into basebandsignals by performing analogue processing such as amplification,filtering, down-conversion, or the like. Also, the analogue processingunit 324 converts a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DA converter328 into a high-frequency signal.

The AD/DA converter 328 converts the analogue baseband signal suppliedfrom the analogue processing unit 324 into a digital format, andsupplies the same to the digital processing unit 330. Also, the AD/DAconverter 328 converts a digital baseband signal supplied from thedigital processing unit 330 into an analogue format, and supplies thesame to the analogue processing unit 324.

The digital processing unit 330 includes a synchronization unit 332, adecoder 334, a buffer 338, an encoder 340, a control unit 342, and aschedule information holding unit 344. Among these, the synchronizationunit 332, the decoder 334, the encoder 340, and the like function,together with the plurality of antennas 320 a to 320 n, the analogueprocessing unit 324, and the AD/DA converter 328, as a communicationunit for communicating with the base station 10 and the mobile terminal20.

The synchronization unit 332 is supplied, from the AD/DA converter 328,with a reference signal transmitted from the base station 10, andperforms a synchronization process of a radio frame based on thereference signal. Specifically, the synchronization unit 332 performssynchronization of the radio frame by computing the correlation betweenthe reference signal and a known sequence pattern and detecting the peakposition of the correlation.

The decoder 334 decodes a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DAconverter 328 and obtains relay data for the base station 10 or themobile terminal 20. Additionally, the decoding may include a MIMOreception process, an OFDM demodulation process, an error correctionprocess, and the like, for example.

The buffer 338 temporarily holds the relay data, obtained by the decoder334, for the base station 10 or the mobile terminal 20. Then, the relaydata for the mobile terminal 20 is read out, by the control of thecontrol unit 342, from the buffer 338 to the encoder 340 in thetransmission time of the access downlink to the mobile terminal 20.Likewise, the relay data for the base station 10 is read out, by thecontrol of the control unit 342, from the buffer 338 to the encoder 340in the transmission time of the relay uplink to the base station 10.

The encoder 340 encodes the data supplied from the buffer 338, andsupplies the same to the AD/DA converter 328. Additionally, the encodingmay include a MIMO transmission process and an OFDM demodulationprocess, for example.

The control unit 342 controls transmission processing and receptionprocessing at the relay device 30 according to the schedule informationheld in the schedule information holding unit 344. For example, therelay device 30 performs, based on the control of the control unit 342,transmission processing and reception processing using frequency-timeblocks indicated by the schedule information.

The schedule information holding unit 344 holds the schedule informationmanaged by the base station 10. This schedule information indicatesfrequency-time blocks to be used respectively for the relay downlink,the access downlink, the access uplink, and the relay uplink, forexample.

<4. Configuration of Base Station>

Next, the configuration of the base station 10 will be described withreference to FIGS. 6 to 16.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of thebase station 10. As shown in FIG. 6, the base station 10 includes aplurality of antennas 120 a to 120 n, an analogue processing unit 124,an AD/DA converter 128, and a digital processing unit 130.

Each of the plurality of antennas 120 a to 120 n receives a radio signalfrom the relay device 30 or the mobile terminal 20 and acquires anelectrical high-frequency signal, and supplies the high-frequency signalto the analogue processing unit 124. Also, each of the plurality ofantennas 120 a to 120 n transmits a radio signal to the relay device 30or the mobile terminal 20 based on the high-frequency signal suppliedfrom the analogue processing unit 124. Since the base station 10 isprovided with the plurality of antennas 120 a to 120 n as described, itis capable of performing MIMO communication or diversity communication.

The analogue processing unit 124 converts the high-frequency signalssupplied from the plurality of antennas 120 a to 120 n into basebandsignals by performing analogue processing such as amplification,filtering, down-conversion, or the like. Also, the analogue processingunit 124 converts a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DA converter128 into a high-frequency signal.

The AD/DA converter 128 converts the analogue baseband signal suppliedfrom the analogue processing unit 124 into a digital format, andsupplies the same to the digital processing unit 130. Also, the AD/DAconverter 128 converts a digital baseband signal supplied from thedigital processing unit 130 into an analogue format, and supplies thesame to the analogue processing unit 124.

The digital processing unit 130 includes a decoder 134, a transmissiondata generation unit 138, an encoder 140, a control unit 142, a scheduleinformation holding unit 144, a SINR holding unit 152, a relay deviceinformation holding unit 154, and a scheduler 156. Among these, thedecoder 134, the encoder 140, and the like function, together with theplurality of antennas 120 a to 120 n, the analogue processing unit 124,and the AD/DA converter 128, as a communication unit for communicatingwith the relay device 30 and the mobile terminal 20.

The decoder 134 decodes a baseband signal supplied from the AD/DAconverter 128 and obtains received data. Additionally, the decoding mayinclude a MIMO reception process, an OFDM demodulation process, an errorcorrection process, and the like, for example.

The transmission data generation unit 138 generates transmission dataincluding schedule information scheduled by the scheduler 156.Additionally, the schedule information is included in the PDCH arrangedat the beginning of the subframes as described above.

The encoder 140 encodes the transmission data supplied from thetransmission data generation unit 138, and supplies the same to theAD/DA converter 128. Additionally, the encoding may include a MIMOtransmission process and an OFDM demodulation process, for example.

The control unit 142 controls transmission processing and receptionprocessing at the base station 10 according to the schedule informationheld in the schedule information holding unit 144. For example, the basestation 10 performs, based on the control of the control unit 142,transmission processing and reception processing using frequency-timeblocks indicated by the schedule information.

The schedule information holding unit 144 holds the schedule informationdetermined by the scheduler 156.

The scheduler 156 (selection unit) schedules relay link communicationwith the relay device 30, and access link communication between therelay device 30 and the mobile terminal 20. Here, the scheduler 156divides the resources for the relay downlink, the access downlink, theaccess uplink, and the relay uplink by frequency/time from thestandpoint of interference avoidance. In the following, allocationpatterns allowing division of resources by frequency/time will bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14.

(Allocation Pattern 1)

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 1 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 7, according to the allocation pattern 1,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to a frequency-time block definedby frequency F2/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocated to afrequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T2, the access uplink(A-u) is allocated to a frequency-time block defined by frequencyF1/slot T1, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to a frequency-timeblock defined by frequency F1/slot T2. Additionally, in FIGS. 7 to 16,frequency-time blocks to which the downlinks are allocated are colouredso as to be distinguished from frequency-time blocks to which theuplinks are allocated. Also, the frequency-time block may be a resourceblock which is the minimum unit for link allocation or a group ofresource blocks.

According to this allocation pattern 1, the base station 10 transmitsdata to the relay device 30 via the relay downlink at frequency F2/slotT1. Then, the relay device 30 receives the data transmitted via therelay downlink, holds it in the buffer 338 as relay data, and thentransmits the relay data to the mobile terminal 20 via the accessdownlink at frequency F2/slot T2.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device 30receives the data transmitted via the access uplink, holds it in thebuffer 338 as relay data, and then transmits the relay data to the basestation 10 via the relay uplink at frequency F1/slot T2.

In this manner, according to the allocation pattern 1, the uplink andthe downlink are separated by frequency, and the relay link and theaccess link in the same direction are separated by time, and thusinterference between each link can be suppressed.

(Allocation Pattern 2)

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 2 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 8, according to the allocation pattern 2,the access downlink (A-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F2/slot T1, the relay downlink (R-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T2, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F1/slot T1, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T2.

According to this allocation pattern 2, the relay device 30 transmitsrelay data held in the buffer 338 to the mobile terminal 20 via theaccess downlink at frequency F2/slot T1. Also, the base station 10transmits data to the relay device 30 via the relay downlink atfrequency F2/slot T1.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device 30receives the data transmitted via the access uplink, holds it in thebuffer 338 as relay data, and transmits the relay data to the basestation 10 via the relay uplink at frequency F1/slot T2.

In this manner, also according to the allocation pattern 2, the uplinkand the downlink are separated by frequency, and the relay link and theaccess link in the same direction are separated by time, and thusinterference between each link can be suppressed.

(Allocation Pattern 3)

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 3 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 9, according to the allocation pattern 3,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F2/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T2, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F1/slot T1, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T2.

According to this allocation pattern 3, the base station 10 transmitsdata to the relay device 30 via the relay downlink at frequency F2/slotT1. Then, the relay device 30 receives the data transmitted via therelay downlink, holds it in the buffer 338 as relay data, and thentransmits the relay data to the mobile terminal 20 via the accessdownlink at frequency F1/slot T2.

Furthermore, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device30 via the access uplink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device30 receives the data transmitted via the access uplink, holds it in thebuffer 338 as relay data, and then transmits the relay data to the basestation 10 via the relay uplink at frequency F2/slot T2.

In this manner, according to the allocation pattern 3, the uplink andthe downlink are separated by frequency, and the relay link and theaccess link in the same direction are separated by both frequency andtime, and thus interference between each link can be suppressed.

(Allocation Pattern 4)

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 4 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 10, according to the allocation pattern 4,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F2/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T2, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F2/slot T2, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T1.

According to this allocation pattern 4, the base station 10 transmitsdata to the relay device 30 via the relay downlink at frequency F2/slotT1. Then, the relay device 30 receives the data transmitted via therelay downlink, holds it in the buffer 338 as relay data, and thentransmits the relay data to the mobile terminal 20 via the accessdownlink at frequency F1/slot T2.

Furthermore, the relay device 30 transmits the relay data held in thebuffer 338 to the base station 10 via the relay uplink at frequencyF1/slot T1. Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relaydevice 30 via the access uplink at frequency F2/slot T2.

In this manner, also according to the allocation pattern 4, the uplinkand the downlink are separated by frequency, and the relay link and theaccess link in the same direction are separated by both frequency andtime, and thus interference between each link can be suppressed.

(Allocation Pattern 5)

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 5 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 11, according to the allocation pattern 5,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F1/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T1, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F1/slot T2, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T2.

As described above, unlike the allocation patterns 1 to 4, according tothe allocation pattern 5, the relay link and the access link areseparated by frequency. Accordingly, the delay that occurs between thedownlink of the relay link and the downlink of the access link can bereduced from a per-slot basis to a per-OFDM-symbol basis. Likewise, thedelay that occurs between the uplink of the access link and the uplinkof the relay link can be reduced from a per-slot basis to aper-OFDM-symbol basis.

Specifically, the base station 10 transmits data to the relay device 30via the relay downlink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device30 performs, using frequency F2/slot T1, decoding, buffering, encoding,and transmission to the mobile terminal 20 via the access downlink ofdata received via the relay downlink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception. Additionally, the amount ofdelay may be variable between one OFDM symbol to a plurality of OFDMsymbols.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F1/slot T2. Then, the relay device 30performs, using frequency F2/slot T2, decoding, buffering, encoding, andtransmission to the base station 10 via the relay uplink of datareceived via the access uplink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception.

As described, according to the allocation pattern 5, the relay link andthe access link are separated by frequency (FDD), and the uplink and thedownlink are separated by time (TDD). Therefore, according to theallocation pattern 5, the delay that occurs between the base station 10and the mobile terminal 20 can be reduced compared to the allocationpatterns 1 to 4 where the relay link and the access link are separatedby time, while suppressing the interference between each link.

(Allocation Pattern 6)

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 6 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 12, according to the allocation pattern 6,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F1/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T1, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F2/slot T2, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T2.

In this manner, also with the allocation pattern 6, as with theallocation pattern 5, the relay link and the access link are separatedby frequency. Accordingly, the delay that occurs between the downlink ofthe relay link and the downlink of the access link can be reduced from aper-slot basis to a per-OFDM-symbol basis. Likewise, the delay thatoccurs between the uplink of the access link and the uplink of the relaylink can be reduced from a per-slot basis to a per-OFDM-symbol basis.

Specifically, the base station 10 transmits data to the relay device 30via the relay downlink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device30 performs, using frequency F2/slot T1, decoding, buffering, encoding,and transmission to the mobile terminal 20 via the access downlink ofdata received via the relay downlink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception. Additionally, the amount ofdelay may be variable between one OFDM symbol to a plurality of OFDMsymbols.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F2/slot T2. Then, the relay device 30performs, using frequency F1/slot T2, decoding, buffering, encoding, andtransmission to the base station 10 via the relay uplink of datareceived via the access uplink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception.

As described, according to the allocation pattern 6, the relay link andthe access link are separated by frequency (FDD), and the uplink and thedownlink are separated by both time and frequency (TDD). Therefore,according to the allocation pattern 6, the delay that occurs between thebase station 10 and the mobile terminal 20 can be reduced compared tothe allocation patterns 1 to 4 where the relay link and the access linkare separated by time, while suppressing the interference between eachlink.

(Allocation Pattern 7)

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 7 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 13, according to the allocation pattern 7,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F1/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F2/slot T1, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F3/slot T1, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F4/slot T1.

In this manner, according to the allocation pattern 7, the relay linkand the access link are separated by frequency, and the uplink and thedownlink are also separated by frequency. Therefore, according to theallocation pattern 7, as with the allocation patterns 5 and 6, the delayat the relay device 30 can be reduced to a per-OFDM-symbol basis, andalso, to use one of the uplink and the downlink, it is not necessary towait for the completion of the other.

Specifically, the base station 10 transmits data to the relay device 30via the relay downlink at frequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device30 performs, using frequency F2/slot T1, decoding, buffering, encoding,and transmission to the mobile terminal 20 via the access downlink ofdata received via the relay downlink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception. Additionally, the amount ofdelay may be variable between one OFDM symbol to a plurality of OFDMsymbols.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F3/slot T1. Then, the relay device 30performs, using frequency F4/slot T1, decoding, buffering, encoding, andtransmission to the base station 10 via the relay uplink of datareceived via the access uplink, with the amount of delay on aper-OFDM-symbol basis from the reception.

(Allocation Pattern 8)

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an allocation pattern 8 foreach link. As shown in FIG. 14, according to the allocation pattern 8,the relay downlink (R-d) is allocated to the frequency-time blockdefined by frequency F1/slot T1, the access downlink (A-d) is allocatedto the frequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T2, the accessuplink (A-u) is allocated to the frequency-time block defined byfrequency F1/slot T3, and the relay uplink (R-u) is allocated to thefrequency-time block defined by frequency F1/slot T4.

In this manner, according to the allocation pattern 8, the relay linkand the access link are separated by time, and the uplink and thedownlink are also separated by time. Therefore, according to theallocation pattern 8, the number of frequencies to be used is small, butthe delay characteristics are deteriorated compared to other allocationpatterns.

Specifically, according to the allocation pattern 1, the base station 10transmits data to the relay device 30 via the relay downlink atfrequency F1/slot T1. Then, the relay device 30 receives the datatransmitted via the relay downlink, holds it in the buffer 338 as relaydata, and then transmits the relay data to the mobile terminal 20 viathe access downlink at frequency F1/slot T2.

Also, the mobile terminal 20 transmits data to the relay device 30 viathe access uplink at frequency F1/slot T3. Then, the relay device 30receives the data transmitted via the access uplink, holds it in thebuffer 338 as relay data, and then transmits the relay data to the basestation 10 via the relay uplink at frequency F1/slot T4.

(Comparison of Allocation Patterns)

As described above, there are a plurality of link allocation patterns.Also, the plurality of link allocation patterns are classified into thefollowing four types.

Type A

A type according to which the uplink and the downlink are separated byfrequency, and the relay link and the access link in the same directionare separated by time. The allocation patterns 1 to 4 correspond to typeA.

Type B

A type according to which the uplink and the downlink are separated bytime, and the relay link and the access link in the same direction areseparated by frequency. The allocation patterns 5 and 6 correspond totype B.

Type C

A type according to which the uplink and the downlink, and the relaylink and the access link are separated only by frequency. The allocationpattern 7 corresponds to type C.

Type D

A type according which the uplink and the downlink, and the relay linkand the access link are separated only by time. The allocation pattern 8corresponds to type C.

The allocation patterns belonging to the respective types A to Ddescribed above are different in delay characteristics as has beendescribed in (Allocation Pattern 1) to (Allocation Pattern 8).Specifically, type C demonstrate the most desirable delaycharacteristics, and the delay characteristics are deteriorated in theorder of type B, type A, and type D. On the contrary, the frequencyrange to be used is the narrowest for type D, and becomes wider in theorder of type A, type B, and type C.

Furthermore, the communication capacity required of the relay device 30is different depending on the allocation pattern. For example, tooperate according to the allocation pattern 1, the relay device 30 needsthe communication capacity to concurrently perform reception through theaccess link and the relay link and to concurrently perform transmissionthrough the access link and the relay link. Also, to operate accordingto the allocation pattern 7, the relay device 30 needs the communicationcapacity to concurrently perform transmission/reception through theaccess link and the relay link.

(Scheduling by Scheduler)

As has been described above, there are a plurality of frequency-timeallocation patterns. Also, the delay characteristics or thecommunication capacity required of the relay device 30 is differentdepending on the allocation pattern. Thus, the scheduler 156 performsappropriate scheduling according to the communication capacity of arelay device 30 for which scheduling is performed or the delaycharacteristics required with respect to the mobile terminal 20. In thefollowing, scheduling by the scheduler 156 will be described togetherwith the configurations of the SINR holding unit 152 and the relaydevice information holding unit 154.

The SINR holding unit 152 holds the SINR of each relay device 30informed by the mobile terminal 20.

The relay device information holding unit 154 holds category informationindicating the communication capacity of a relay device 30 imparted bythe relay device 30. For example, category 1 indicates the communicationcapacity to operate only according to the allocation pattern 1, andcategory 2 indicates the communication capacity to operate according toall of the allocation patterns 1 to 8.

The scheduler 156 performs scheduling according to the SINR of eachrelay device 30 held in the SINR holding unit 152, the categoryinformation of each relay device 30 held in the relay device informationholding unit 154, and the delay characteristics required with respect tothe mobile terminal 20. A concrete example of the procedure of thescheduling is shown below.

(1) The scheduler 156 selects a relay device 30 with the highest SINR asthe relay device for communication with the mobile terminal 20, based onthe SINR of each relay device 30 held in the SINR holding unit 152.

(2) The scheduler 156 refers to the relay device information holdingunit 154, and obtains the category information of the selected relaydevice 30.

(3) The scheduler 156 selects an allocation pattern satisfying the delaycharacteristics required with respect to the mobile terminal 20 from thecompatible allocation patterns indicated by the category information.

(4) The scheduler 156 allocates, according to the selected allocationpattern, each of the relay downlink, the access downlink, the accessuplink, and the relay uplink to a free frequency-time block of the radioframe.

Furthermore, the schedule information indicating the frequency-timeblock to which each of the relay downlink, the access downlink, theaccess uplink, and the relay uplink is allocated is held in the scheduleinformation holding unit 144. Also, this schedule information istransmitted to the relay device 30 selected in (1) described above andthe mobile terminal 20. As a result, the relay device 30 and the mobileterminal 20 are enabled to communicate according to this scheduleinformation.

Additionally, the scheduler 156 may determine, in (3) described above,the delay characteristics required with respect to the mobile terminal20 according to the attribute of transmission data, for example. Forexample, if the transmission data is data of a real-time strategy game,the scheduler 156 may determine that the amount of delay of the lowestlevel is required, and select the allocation pattern 7 with the bestdelay characteristics. Similarly, the scheduler 156 may determine thedelay characteristics required with respect to the mobile terminal 20according to which of audio data, still image data, video data,streaming data, download data, and the like the transmission datacorresponds.

Now, a concrete example of links allocated to respective frequency-timeblocks will be described with reference to FIG. 15.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing an example allocation of linksto the respective frequency-time blocks forming a radio frame. In theexample shown in FIG. 15, allocation of links to the respectivefrequency-time blocks in subframe #0 is performed according to theallocation pattern 7, and allocation of links to the respectivefrequency-time blocks in subframes #1 and #2 is performed according tothe allocation pattern 2 and the allocation pattern 5. Similarly, linksare allocated to the frequency-time blocks in other subframes accordingto any of the allocation patterns.

As described, according to the present embodiment, communication can beperformed by combining different allocation patterns in a radio frame.Additionally, an example is shown in FIG. 15 where the subframe is theunit of allocation for the frequency-time blocks, but 0.5 ms slot mayalso be the unit of allocation for the frequency-time blocks.

Also, the scheduler 156 may change the allocation of links to respectivefrequency-time blocks for each radio frame.

FIG. 16 is a modified example of the configuration of a radio frame by acombination of allocation patterns. In the example shown in FIG. 16,allocation of links to the respective frequency-time blocks in subframe#1 is performed according to the allocation pattern 7, and allocation oflinks to the respective frequency-time blocks at frequency F1 ofsubframes #1 to #4 and the respective frequency-time blocks at frequencyF4 of subframes #1 to #4 is performed according to the allocationpattern 8.

As described, since the frequency used by the allocation pattern 8 isone block, the allocation pattern 8 can be arranged at a part wherethere is one spare block of frequency. However, the allocation pattern 8is inferior in the delay characteristics compared to other allocationpatterns, and thus the scheduler 156 may select the allocation pattern 8for communication with the mobile terminal 20 where the allowable delayis relatively large.

Additionally, an example is described above where the scheduler 156selects an allocation pattern to be used for the communication with themobile terminal 20, and allocates each link to a free frequency-timeblock according to the selected allocation pattern, but the presentembodiment is not limited to such an example. For example, the scheduler156 may have the frequency-time blocks forming a radio frame grouped inadvance according to a plurality of allocation patterns. In this case,the scheduler 156 may select an allocation pattern to be used forcommunication with the mobile terminal 20, and select the group offrequency-time blocks that is based on this allocation pattern as theresources for communication with the mobile terminal 20.

<5. Operation of Communication System>

In the foregoing, the configuration of the base station 10 has beendescribed with reference to FIGS. 6 to 16. Next, the operation of thecommunication system 1 according to the present embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 17.

FIG. 17 is a sequence chart showing the operation of the communicationsystem 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 17, eachrelay device 30 transmits category information indicating itscommunication capacity to the base station 10 (S404, S408). Also, eachrelay device 30 transmits a reference signal for synchronization at apredetermined timing (S412, S416).

The synchronization unit 232 of the mobile terminal 20 performs asynchronization process based on the reference signal transmitted fromthe relay device 30, and the SINR acquisition unit 236 acquires the SINRwith respect to the relay device 30 from the correlation value obtainedat the time of the synchronization process. Then, the mobile terminal 20notifies the base station 10 of the SINR of each relay device 30acquired by the SINR acquisition unit 236 (S420).

Then, the scheduler 156 of the base station 10 selects a relay devicewhich is to relay the communication with the mobile terminal 20, basedon the SINR of each relay device 30. In the case the relay device 30A isselected, the scheduler 156 refers to the category information of therelay device 30A, and selects an allocation pattern that the relaydevice 30A is compatible with and that satisfies the required delaycharacteristics (S424).

Furthermore, the scheduler 156 allocates, according to the selectedallocation pattern, each of the relay downlink, the access downlink, theaccess uplink, and the relay uplink to a free frequency-time block inthe radio frame (S426). Then, schedule information indicating thefrequency-time block to which each link has been allocated istransmitted to the relay device 30A together with downlink data (S428),and the relay device 30A relays the schedule information and thedownlink data to the mobile terminal 20 (S432).

Then, the mobile terminal 20 transmits uplink data to the relay device30A according to the schedule information, and the relay device 30Arelays the uplink data to the base station 10 according to the scheduleinformation (S440).

<6. Summary>

As described above, the base station 10 according to the presentembodiment is capable of appropriately selecting a link allocationpattern for communication with the mobile terminal 20 according to thecommunication capacity of the relay device 30 or the delaycharacteristics required with respect to the mobile terminal 20. Thatis, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to dynamicallycope with the demands regarding delay different for each channel, andthus the total performance regarding delay can be improved.

The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been describedabove with reference to the accompanying drawings, whilst the presentinvention is not limited to the above examples, of course. A personskilled in the art may find various alternations and modificationswithin the scope of the appended claims, and it should be understoodthat they will naturally come under the technical scope of the presentinvention.

For example, the steps of the processing of the communication system 1of the present specification do not necessarily have to be processedchronologically according to the order described as the sequence chart.For example, the steps of the processing of the communication system 1may be processed according to an order different from the order shown asthe sequence chart or may be processed in parallel.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A base station, comprising: circuitryconfigured to communicate with a mobile terminal via a relay linkbetween the base station and a relay device and an access link betweenthe relay device and the mobile terminal by orthogonalfrequency-division multiplexing, receive information that indicates anallocation pattern, that the relay device is compatible with, of aplurality of predetermined allocation patterns, the informationincluding identification of a category of the relay device and thecategory indicating a communication capacity of the relay device, selecta predetermined allocation pattern, which the relay device is compatiblewith, according to the received information, of an uplink of the relaylink and a downlink of the relay link for frequency-time blocks of theplurality of predetermined allocation patterns, wherein the plurality ofpredetermined allocation patterns are based on subframes of the radioframes used for transmission in uplink and downlink communication in therelay link, and transmit information that indicates said selectedpredetermined allocation pattern to said relay device, wherein theplurality of predetermined allocation patterns includes a type ofpredetermined allocation pattern where frequency-time blocks of thedownlink of the relay link and the downlink of the access link, and theuplink of the relay link and the uplink of the access link are differentin time.
 2. The base station according to claim 1, wherein each of theplurality of predetermined allocation patterns has different delaycharacteristics.
 3. The base station according to claim 1, wherein thecircuitry further selects a predetermined allocation pattern of anuplink of the access link, and a downlink of the access link forfrequency-time blocks from a plurality of predetermined allocationpatterns.
 4. A method for a base station, comprising: communicating, bycircuitry of the base station, with a mobile terminal via a relay linkbetween the base station and a relay device and an access link betweenthe relay device and the mobile terminal by orthogonalfrequency-division multiplexing; receiving, by the circuitry of the basestation, information that indicates an allocation pattern, that therelay device is compatible with, of a plurality of allocation patterns,the information including identification of a category of the relaydevice and the category indicating a communication capacity of the relaydevice, selecting, by the circuitry of the base station, a predeterminedallocation pattern, which the relay device is compatible with accordingto the received information, of an uplink of the relay link and adownlink of the relay link for frequency-time blocks of the plurality ofpredetermined allocation patterns, wherein the plurality ofpredetermined allocation patterns are based on subframes of the radioframes used for transmission in uplink and downlink communication in therelay link, transmit information that indicates said selectedpredetermined allocation pattern to said relay device, and the pluralityof predetermined allocation patterns includes a type of predeterminedallocation pattern where frequency-time blocks of the downlink of therelay link and the downlink of the access link, and the uplink of therelay link and the uplink of the access link are different in time. 5.The method according to claim 4, wherein each of the plurality ofpredetermined allocation patterns has different delay characteristics.6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: selecting, bythe circuitry of the base station, a predetermined pattern of an uplink,and a downlink of the access link for frequency-time blocks from aplurality of predetermined allocation patterns.
 7. A mobile terminal,comprising: circuitry configured to communicate with a base station viaa relay device according to a predetermined allocation pattern selectedby the base station, wherein the mobile terminal communicates with thebase station via a relay link between the base station and the relaydevice and an access link between the relay device and the mobileterminal, and the mobile terminal communicates with the relay device bya predetermined allocation pattern, which the relay device is compatiblewith, of an uplink of the relay link and a downlink of the relay linkfor frequency-time blocks of a plurality of predetermined allocationpatterns, wherein the plurality of predetermined allocation patterns arebased on subframes of the radio frames used for transmission in uplinkand downlink communication in the relay link, the predeterminedallocation pattern being selected based on information indicating anallocation pattern, that the relay device is compatible with, of theplurality of predetermined allocation patterns, the informationincluding identification of a category of the relay device and thecategory indicating a communication capacity of the relay device, theplurality of predetermined allocation patterns include a type ofpredetermined allocation patterns where frequency-time blocks of thedownlink of the relay link and a downlink of the access link, and theuplink of the relay link and an uplink of the access link are differentin time.
 8. The mobile terminal according to claim 7, wherein each ofthe plurality of predetermined allocation patterns have different delaycharacteristics.
 9. A method for a mobile terminal, comprising:communicating, by circuitry, with a base station via a relay deviceaccording to a predetermined allocation pattern selected by the basestation, wherein the mobile terminal communicates with the base stationvia a relay link between the base station and the relay device and anaccess link between the relay device and the mobile terminal, and themobile terminal communicates with the relay device by a predeterminedallocation pattern, which the relay device is compatible with, of anuplink of the relay link and a downlink of the relay link forfrequency-time blocks of a plurality of predetermined allocationpatterns, wherein the plurality of predetermined allocation patterns arebased on subframes of the radio frames used for transmission in uplinkand downlink communication in the relay link, the predeterminedallocation pattern being selected based on information indicating anallocation pattern, that the relay device is compatible with, of theplurality of allocation patterns, the information includingidentification of a category of the relay device and the categoryindicating a communication capacity of the relay device, the pluralityof predetermined allocation patterns include a type of predeterminedallocation patterns where frequency-time blocks of the downlink of therelay link and a downlink of the access link, and the uplink of therelay link and an uplink of the access link are different in time.
 10. Acommunication system, comprising: a mobile terminal; a relay device; anda base station including circuitry configured to communicate with themobile terminal via a relay link between the base station and the relaydevice and an access link between the relay device and the mobileterminal by orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing, communicate witha mobile terminal via a relay link between the base station and a relaydevice and an access link between the relay device and the mobileterminal by orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing, receiveinformation that indicates an allocation pattern, that the relay deviceis compatible with, of a plurality of predetermined allocation patterns,the information including identification of a category of the relaydevice and the category indicating a communication capacity of the relaydevice, select a predetermined allocation pattern, which the relaydevice is compatible with, according to the received information, of anuplink of the relay link and a downlink of the relay link forfrequency-time blocks of the plurality of predetermined allocationpatterns, wherein the plurality of predetermined allocation patterns arebased on subframes of the radio frames used for transmission in uplinkand downlink communication in the relay link, and transmit informationthat indicates said selected predetermined allocation pattern to saidrelay device, wherein the plurality of predetermined allocation patternsincludes a type of predetermined allocation pattern where frequency-timeblocks of the downlink of the relay link and the downlink of the accesslink, and the uplink of the relay link and the uplink of the access linkare different in time.
 11. The base station according to claim 1,wherein the category of the relay device identifies allocation patternsthat are compatible with the relay device.